Anger Management
by Farewellheart
Summary: When Sakura loses her temper, all of the new found team seven must witness a monster they partially created. Will being forced to talk it over ever cure the damage that's been done?


Tsunade tapped her freshly painted nails against the hard wood of her desk as she watched her prized apprentice. The girl was unusually quiet; no doubt, she had a good idea as to what was coming. She continued to drum her fingernails against the desk; intimidation, it was something she had mastered during her time as Hokage.

"Sakura" Tsunade said, her voice sharp and clipped.

Sakura immediately straightened.

"You hospitalized a Special Jonin of Konoha, a direct violation of the code you accepted upon receiving your hitai-ate. You are being charged with assault. What do you have to say for yourself?"

"No excuse," Sakura muttered. She balled her hands into tightly clenched fists and held her breath. Her mentor could easily send her to trial over what she had pulled earlier, and she would have to face very serious charges. It could ruin her title as the Hokage's apprentice, it could get her a years worth of c-ranked missions. But damn, it had felt good to break that bastards jaw! She couldn't say that though, because if she knew her mentor like she thought she did, a remark like that would get her some painfully deserved bruises.

"Ebisu," she paused, carefully considering her words. "He said something unforgivable, and I lost my temper." she finished lamely, feeling only slightly ashamed of herself. Attacking another member of Konoha like that was definitely not something she was accustomed to, but every time she replayed his voice in her head, she only wanted to hit him harder. She clenched her teeth painfully and awaited her mentor's decision.

Tsunade narrowed her eyes, watching her apprentice's form closely. She already knew what happened, Konohomaru had already given his statement, along with the other nine witnesses. Sakura's answer, however, told her far more then what the other's had. Sighing, Tsunade unfolded her hands, leaning back in her chair in a more casual manner.

"First of all, I would like to say that I'm ashamed of you Sakura. For such a level headed girl, you showed a complete lack of self control."

She watched the girl closely, waiting for a response. Sakura seemed to have lost some of her tension, but the fire remained in her eyes.

"I'm sentencing you to a year off-duty. On your off time, you will be taking anger management courses."

Sakura opened her mouth to retort, but was quickly cut off by Tsunade raising her hand, her eyes telling her in no uncertain terms that now was not the time to speak. Once sure she had the girl's attention once again, she continued.

"As for the assault charge, that depends entirely upon Ebisu. If he wants you charged, you will have to appear before the council. That is all."

Sakura resisted the urge to fall to her knees and beg. A year off of missions! What the hell was she going to do in an entire year? Mission had been her glue for the past year and a half. Ever since Team seven's impromptu reunion, she had felt the burning desire to go on every single mission she could get her hands on. Now she had to stick to the village, possibly beg Ebisu's forgiveness, and attend a class of dimwits who couldn't control their temper.

_You're one of those idiots, now_ her mind whispered. Shut the hell up, Sakura mentally growled.

"Yes, Hokage!" Sakura nodded once and awaited her orders.

Tsunade nodded and reached across her desk, snatching the papers she had already drawn up for Sakura's _program_. Without standing, she reached across the desk, paper's dangling from finely manicured hands. Sakura grabbed the papers then spun around, quickly making her exit from the office.

Tsunade sighed as Sakura departed, her form slouching back into her chair. She needed sake, lots of sake. Shizune soon appeared, her head popping out from the side of the door. Noticing the Hokage's state, she slipped inside, quietly closing the door behind her.

"Did she accept?" She asked, standing close to the door in case her mentor was in a less-then-pleased mood.

"Of course she did," she replied, "The girl's not an idiot."

Shizune nodded and opened the door, but was halted.

"Shizune..."

The woman in question stopped and turned around, curious at the sudden change of stature. She meant business.

"Bring me the Uchiha brat."

Shizune nodded and quickly made her exit. Once the doors were safely closed, she sighed, leaning against the sturdy oak. Team 7 was certainly something else...

Sakura tried hard not to stomp her feet like a petulant child. She was already clenching her summons papers so hard in her hand that she was sure she wouldn't be able to read it later on.

How could she be stupid? She was so full of venomous hatred for herself at the moment; he could spit acid. Never in her life had she lost herself so completely, like when she did with that guy, when it was over she hardly remembered what she had been doing.

Her knuckles were still raw, swollen and bruised. Something she had refused to heal, the pain helping her remember her sheer idiocy.

While she strode down the main street of Konoha, kicking up dust, she gently opened and closed her freehand. It was broken, definitely. She hissed quietly when she gently tugged on a knuckle, setting it in place. Maybe they would take some healing after all; otherwise her hand wouldn't ever be the same. She really over did it this time.

"Damnit!" she whispered brokenly, her voice taking on the customary hoarseness before she cried. She wouldn't do this, no, she wouldn't cry in public again. That's just what she needed, and then everyone would really think she lost her marbles.

But what was she doing? Beating up a fellow citizen over a brash comment? Clenching her fists at her very own mentor? She felt like a caged animal, ready to lash out at anyone who toyed with her barred door.

"Fuck," she cried out, in an uncommon show of tumult.

"Sakura?"

Her spine stiffened. This is not what she needed right now, not after today. She slowly looked up, blinking away the stinging sensation in her eyes, and met the eyes of her former crush. "Sasuke." she muttered lamely.

He already looked bored, and she knew without a doubt he could see that she was ready to cry. Why the hell would call out to her then? Damn him. "I have to go," she muttered coldly and turned away, trying not to run for her home.

Sasuke watched her with something akin to boredom, his face never betraying a single thought or emotion that passed through him. Why did he call out to her? Scowling, he spun around, shoving his hands into his pockets as he made his way to the Hokage Tower. He briefly considered taking to the rooftops, avoiding the accusing glares of the citizens he passed, but what would that accomplish? He was officially pardoned; he would not hide his face.

A scowl slowly made it's way over his hard features as walked, his mind not noticing the slight action as his thoughts twisted and turned. Before he was able to pick each up and correctly look at it, he found himself at the entrance to the Hokage tower. He turned his mind off, something he had become accustomed to over the years, before making his way up the winding staircase that led to the Hokage's office.

Without knocking, he strode into the office purposefully, leaving the door hanging open as he stepped up to the desk.

The Hokage sat in her chair, her elbows propped up on the desk as she regarded him through slitted eyes.

"Shizune!" She called out. Immediately, the door to the office was closed. Lord knows it would have been a wasted effort to ask the young man in front of her desk to close it.

"What do you want?" Sasuke asked, cutting to the chase.

Tsunade eyed him for another minute, before straightening her posture. Instead of answering, she reached to her side, producing papers with an official seal, then handed it to Sasuke.

Raising an eyebrow, Sasuke looked over the papers.

"This wasn't part of the deal."

Tsunade snorted, clasping her hands together on top of her desk.

"The deal is that once this is over, you will be forever part of Konoha. As a Konoha ninja, you are expected to be mentally stable in order to carry out missions. As it stands now, you're out of control and dangerous. If you refuse this, the deal is off."

Sasuke leveled the Hokage with a glare that would often send even fellow Shinobi running. Tsunade sat in her chair, returning his glare with one of her own. The tension in the room spiked as their wills were pitted against each other.

Finally, Sasuke snorted and turned around, leaving the office in the same manner he had entered in.

"Shizune!"

The woman in question poked her head inside.

"Get me some sake."

Shizune sighed and closed the door, moving down the hall to where she knew her master held her private stash. There was no use arguing with her now. After dealing with Sasuke, anyone would need a drink.

Sakura brushed her hands nervously over mid length jean shorts, and quickly checked to make sure her tank top straps were still in place. She had been shocked when Ino showed up at her apartment, ten o'clock at night, demanding to know what she was going to wear to "school." Ino had used the excuse that she had to make a good impression on her "teacher," and thus getting her out of Anger Management sooner.

Yeah, right. Somehow she let her talk her into wearing a dark gray tank, spaghetti straps and all. It was a long tank, but it fit her form snugly, with a low sweetheart cut to show off what little boobs she had. There was a band underneath her boobs, for what she assumed was to make her chest look bigger and her rib cage smaller...but she didn't want to speculate on that. She wasn't going to pass this course by being _that_ kind of student.

At least she had her comfortable distressed jeans to keep her from squirming. They were old, but fit her curves without showing them off. Something she was fond of.

"Alright, stop stalling" she whispered to her. She raised her hand slowly and knocked on the wooden door in front of her. She was in a small building, just off of the business district of Konoha, and standing in front of what she assumed would be some sort of office. She hoped this was going to be that cliché therapy type thing, with the sofa and all.

"Come in," an itching sensation crawling up her spine. That voice was familiar.

She turned the handle and shoved herself into the room. "Oh no," she whispered quietly. Now she was mortified. Extremely mortified, the kind of mortified that made you want to crawl under a desk, hide your head under a binder, and cry for your savior.

She slowly inhaled. "What is everyone doing here?" she asked, her eyes bouncing off of each of her teammates. They were all here! What the hell were they here for?? Her mind was scrambling with ideas, none of them pleasant.

"Ha ha, well" Kakashi momentarily lowered his book to the desk he sat behind. "Tsunade has ordered us to do a group therapy session!" his voice raised with false enthusiasm.

Sakura figured he wanted to smack her with his stupid book of porn.

"Why don't you have a seat," he offered spreading his hand out to one of the comfortable armed and plush chairs that sat in a neat circle. She had to choose between sitting in-between Sai and Naruto, or she would have to pull the chair into a different area. This was going to be a long day.

"Oh! Oh! Over here, Sakura! Sit here!" Naruto waved frantically and pointed to the only free chair in the room.

She thought she heard a faint huff of breath coming from Sasuke, was he laughing at the idiocy? That bastard. This was serious, now she couldn't even impress the teacher! Damn it.

Without further preamble, she dropped into the chair between the two lunk heads and crossed her ankles.

"Where do we begin?" she muttered dejectedly.

Kakashi looked over each of his students carefully before leaning back in his chair and throwing his legs over the small wooden desk he was provided with. The temptation to just read and let them argue was strong, but he knew that if none of those present showed improvement, Tsunade would deal with him directly. A cold shiver went up his spine at the thought; the Hokage had proven that she could be sadistic when needed.

"Let's start by telling the group why exactly you're here. Be honest." Kakashi said, directing his gaze to Sasuke, who sat the furthest to the left.

Sasuke huffed and crossed his arms. In his mind, he could see the first day he was a genin, Kakashi sitting before them much like he was now, asking about dreams.

"I was ordered to attend," he finally answered, his voice drawn out in an uncaring manner.

Kakashi crossed his arms as well, his only visible eye staring at Sasuke. "Everyone here was ordered to attend. The question is; why were you ordered to attend."

This was demeaning and pointless. He had half a mind to just walk out and leave this insanity behind. The only thing that kept him in his seat was the thought of finally avenging his clan. With reluctance, he gave the answer his former sensei wanted.

"The Hokage said I was 'out of control and dangerous'."

Kakashi nodded and turned his attention to the next in the circle: Naruto. With any luck, Naruto would finish talking by the end of the scheduled hour and he could go back to reading.

"Well, it's simple." Naruto started, puffing up his chest to make sure everyone was paying attention to the number one ninja. "I've been attending these stupid things since I was a kid," he suddenly deflated, seemingly realizing just now what that meant.

"Anyway," he shrugged carelessly, "It won't interfere with my plan, and maybe it won't be so boring with you guys around." He flashed his infamous toothy grin and looked pointedly between Sakura and Sasuke.

Sakura's face flushed, and then quickly overflowed with the brightest red the team had seen yet. "Ugh," she muttered and turned her head away.

"Moving on," Kakashi waved a hand in Sai's general direction, was he reading under the desk? That teacher...

"To learn how to become angry," Sai deadpanned. The room went still, all eyes on Sai. Seriously?

Sai cleared his throat, "I read that experiencing anger is a natural part of interacting with society, that it is a stress relief, and a learning experience. " He smiled at Sakura.

"Stop looking at me, idiot." Sakura muttered.

"You're turn, Sakura."

Sakura inhaled slowly and picked at a hangnail. "I beat someone up," she shrugged.

"Not for the first time!" Naruto cried, rubbing his head in memory of all those punches.

"This time was different," Sakura snapped. She bit her lip and turned to look over her shoulder, out a small window. This was harder than I thought, she laughed shakily to herself. "I put him in the hospital...." she murmured, "in a coma. " she finished her sentence with a whisper.

Sasuke glanced over to Sakura. His face was calm and controlled, not betraying the shock he felt. Little old Sakura, little defenseless Sakura, put a man in a coma?

"You beat a civilian?" He asked casually. It was the only explanation. "I'm amazed you would sink so low as to attack someone who can't defend themselves."

Kakashi wedged his book in between his legs and quickly looked to Sakura. Ten minutes in and he already had work to do.

Sakura gaped for a moment, sink so- why that little. "You stupid ...you, Agh!" She jumped to her feet and stuck a purple and black hand in Sasuke's face, her finger stayed in a lamely curled fashion because it was too swollen to straighten.

"How dare you," she growled viciously. "You think you're so mighty after everything you've done."

"Sakura, " Naruto's voice was unusually quiet, and held some nervousness to it. "He doesn't know what happened," he reached a hand out to her.

She slapped his hand away, ignoring the sharp pain that shot from her fingers all the way to her elbow. "Shut the hell up, Naruto!" she growled.

Sai tilted his head to the side and murmured quietly to himself.

"What did you just say?" Sakura snapped, spinning on him.

She felt like that vicious animal again, cornering herself and bearing her teeth and anyone who dared to come near. She wanted to punch the hell out of that snotty brat across the room from her. How could he? Him. After everything they did for him, and everything he _didn't_ do. Her heart fluttered madly, while she glared at him. "I hate you," she whispered to herself, half hoping he could hear.

Kakashi sighed as he watched the exchange. How did Sakura become so... It didn't matter, not anymore.

"Sakura." He said, his voice sharp. "Close your eyes and take a deep breath." He ordered.

Sasuke immediately took note of her bruised hand. Broken, from the looks of it. He kept his face carefully schooled, watching to see what should do next. His entire body tensed, ready to defend himself if needed, and then she spoke _those_ words. Hate? She didn't know the first thing about hate.

Sakura stared hard for a moment. Emotionally constipated jackass, she decided on a whim. She slowly sat back down in her chair, closing her eyes and taking a deep raspy breath. She felt the tension in her chest and arms, and didn't realize how bad it was until she slowly let the air out of her lungs. She kept her eyes closed for longer than a minute, but she didn't care, her whole body was shaking and she needed calm.

"Interesting," Sai murmured.

"Shut up, " Naruto whispered harshly. He'd never seen Sakura like this, not once in their entire lifetime together. They had been in the same class since he could remember, and as she got older she had yelled when someone upset her, but never with that...voice. It sounded like she was holding on to something heavy inside, which was more than enough for him to understand.

"It's okay, Naruto" Sakura sighed and slowly opened her eyes to look at her teammates. "I'm not going to attack anyone, just because of a _stupid_ comment." She pointedly ignored Sasuke, "that's why I'm here, and I _never_" her voice took on a biting tone, "make the same _mistake_ twice."

Sasuke watched Sakura for a moment longer before turning his attention back to Kakashi. There was no reason to say anything. He filed her little 'outburst' away in the back of his mind. He would take a better look at it once he was alone.

Kakashi took a deep breath, glad that his former student still listened to him after all. It was obvious to all present that Sakura had some deeply buried issues. He quickly looked to Sasuke before returning his gaze to Sakura. It seems that was unable to forgive him after all these years, a fact that he found strange. Three years, her and Naruto chased his shadow, eager to bring him home. Something changed.

Crinkling his left eye in his version of a smile, he grabbed his book once more.

"The first step is admitting you have a problem," he said. It briefly passed his mind that it sounded like a line from AA, but dismissed it.

Thumbing to where he left off in his book, he looked up one more time. "Sakura, explain, if you will, _why_ you did what you did. Tell us what happened, in your own words."

Sakura glanced at her audience and quickly looked down at her hands, sitting uselessly on her lap. They were ugly right now, with the amount of damage she had done to them. Tsunade had always told her to wear her leather gloves when she got into a fight, which would have stopped her hands from getting completely torn up, and looking like ground hamburger. At that time though, she had completely forgotten all things sane.

"I was on my way home after a long shift at the hospital," she paused and sighed dejectedly. "There was a death on my watch, a young boy who slipped up with his explosive tags." She shuddered at the memory. She had seen a lot of things, being an intern at the Konoha hospital, but never anything this bad. He was around the age of seven, but you couldn't tell by the looks of his face, it was nearly burned off and indiscernible.

"I tried, but it was too late, he was in severe shock and ...the burns," her throat closed for a minute. She never knew how much it would affect her, to watch a child die right beneath her hands while she struggled to give him life.

"Anyway," she let out a long breath. Such is the life of the medic ninja, she reminded herself coolly.

"On my way home, I ran into Konohomaru." She expected Naruto to pipe up and say something stupid about the former Hokage's son, but he said nothing, watching her with serious cerulean eyes. She returned her gaze to her hands. "He stopped me and asked me about the boy, apparently they were friends, and when he found out about him; he was pretty torn up." she remembered his face falling, and his brave attempt at holding back his tears.

_Teach me_. He had murmured quietly, _teach me how to help someone like that, before it's too late_.

"He asked me to show him ...something," she muttered, she didn't want to relive those words. "I told him it wasn't easy, and that it took years of practice. It upset him, but I think he understood. " She shook her head slowly and sighed, "then stupid Ebisu came along and said something."

_Don't ask her, she's just an intern. Why don't you ask someone with more knowledge and skill?_

She related his words with clenched teeth and gripped her sore hands together.  
"He went on to list the things I'm apparently incapable of doing...because of my civilian family," she frowned. "Then he said I was a waste of time, that stupid arrogant..." she trailed off. "We got into an argument, and he shoved at me, trying to show Konohomaru how useless I was." She remembered catching his hand with ease, and then things got foggy, did she break his wrist? Probably.

"I lost my temper, and I attacked." she finished with a small shrug. What else could she say? She didn't feel right, spilling her guts in front of her team. It made her feel weak again.


End file.
